To Err is Human to Protect, Divine
by TonksIsMyHero
Summary: The fourth oneshot in the RLNT extravaganza...a latenight conversation between the two leads to some serious business concerning their young friends.


_**Disclaimer: I do not own anything to do with Harry Potter. I yield to thee, JK Rowling, Goddess of the Written Word.**_

**_To Err is Human; to Protect, Divine_**

Tonks clattered into the kitchen, giving a huge jump at the sight of Remus, whom she had not counted on being awake at this time of night.

"Blimey, Remus, my heart's about to pop out my throat!" she said, clutching her chest with a bit of a smile.

"Sorry," said Remus.

"It's okay. What're you doing up?"

"I was a bit too achy for sleep just yet. And you?" he asked her, pouring her a cup of tea as he did so.

"Just thinking," said Tonks, somewhat evasively.

"About what?"

"The usual," said Tonks, taking the tea. "Well, that and some other stuff."

"Like what?"

"Inquisitive tonight, aren't we?" she said with a bit of a laugh.

"Well, just worried."

"Mostly I was just hungry."

"Sugar? Honey?" asked Remus, holding both out to her.

Tonks took both and added two lumps of sugar and one spoonful of honey to her tea. It was how she'd always taken her tea, and Remus watched as she stirred it methodically.

"Did you see Fleur trying on the tiara earlier?" said Tonks, her face suddenly alight with a cheeky grin.

"No, I missed that," said Remus.

"Lucky you. I know she and Molly are getting on better now, but I still think she might've wanted to thump Fleur when she started going on about how lovely eet weel look wiz zee bridesmaid's dresses – and 'ow beautiful she weel look in eet."

Remus choked slightly on his tea when Tonks put on the accent and laughed. It was true that Fleur had won her way into their hearts at last with her devotion to Bill despite his horrific scarring, but that didn't stop them thinking her to be a bit stuck-up. All the same, Remus felt it to be his duty to be protective to anyone on their side.

"At least she's got confidence," said Remus fairly.

"Yeah, I guess so. But she's always giving me this _look _whenever I knock something over, and then whenever I do something to my hair –"

"So ignore it. She's the only one who has a problem with any of it."

Tonks grinned and sipped her tea. Indeed, she was in full mad-hair glory tonight, with bright turquoise curls framing her face. Add her orange pyjama bottoms and faded Weird Sisters shirt and she was positively punk. Next to the graceful, stunningly beautiful Fleur, most men wouldn't have given Tonks a second glance. In Remus's case, however, he'd never really liked blondes all that much.

"Now, then, Mr. Lupin," said Tonks with a businesslike tone to her voice. "There are two hard things. First: I assume you heard that Harry isn't going back to school after this summer?"

"Yes, I did," said Remus, sipping his tea gingerly. "But I think it really is his–"

"I know it's his own thing," said Tonks, waving a dismissive hand. "That's not it. I'm not even concerned that Ron and Hermione aren't going either."

"Sorry?"

"Ron and Hermione told him they aren't going either. They said they'd go with him wherever he's planning."

"Hermione Granger, a dropout?" said Remus in disbelief.

"I know. Every time I think of it, I grip the countertops tight in case the world stops spinning. But anyway, that's not my point. Now, I know he'll probably get really narked, but I can't help but wonder if he'd allow us to be…well, not really guardians or anything, but if we offered to just check on him every so often…"

"Tonks, do I detect a maternal instinct?"

Tonks rolled her eyes. "That's not what I mean. I just meant…what with Dumbledore gone, Harry really hasn't got any of his protectors there anymore. He used to have Sirius, and now he's gone, and then it was Dumbledore, and he's gone. I just worry a bit, that's all. Hermione's the only one who really thinks with a clear head most of the time."

"True," said Remus. "She's a smart girl, very smart. Lots of common sense. But the thing about Hermione is – and this stays here – she's got _too much_ common sense. Sometimes I think she'd benefit by taking some more risks. I always thought that while I taught her."

"She's taken risks. Look at all those times she's fought alongside Harry," Tonks argued.

"I'm not denying she did that, but I mean that she needs to take more personal risks. She's rather guarded sometimes, don't you think? Sometimes you can profit from letting an enemy know your weakness," said Remus philosophically.

"What d'you mean?" asked Tonks, brushing a curl from her face.

"Let's say I had a child, we'll say a daughter. And one day, my enemy threatens my daughter if I refuse to help him. What would I do?"

"What would _you _do? Save your girl," said Tonks. "Right?"

"Unless I knew to act as though losing the child would not destroy me. Doing that would so confuse an enemy that I would be able to strike, them not truly having found my weakness – or so they think."

Tonks stared for a moment. "Yeah, but if the enemy was Voldemort –"

"Then I wouldn't hesitate to save my daughter. That's where I would be guarded."

"Right. Anyway, I was thinking we could sort of offer to be Harry's…I dunno what we'd be called. We could just be there anytime he needed us. I know he can produce a Patronus, so he could contact us that way if he ever needed us, you know? Just in case. Maybe if he knew we're ready to help…"

Tonks trailed off and drank the last of her tea.

"I know what you're saying," said Remus. "I think it's a good idea. It's nice to know there's someone out there willing to help."

"Good," said Tonks.

"I'll talk to him soon. Not tomorrow, it's still too early. In a few days," said Remus.

"Good," said Tonks again.

"Now then, what was the other thing?"

"Ah, yes, the second hard thing: there's a boggart in the cupboard and I can't seem to get rid of it," said Tonks, slightly sheepish.

"Why? Did it frighten you too much?" asked Remus kindly.

"Er…yeah, yeah, it did."

"What did it turn into?"

"You don't want to know."

"All right, then. You don't have to tell me."

"It turned into Fleur."

Remus stared at Tonks.

"I'm only joking," said Tonks. "It turned into a Chimaera."

"Right," said Remus, smiling. He stood up and took the mugs to the sink, then blew out the candles on the table. "To bed now, you must be exhausted."

"A bit," said Tonks, yawning. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight," said Remus, and with a quick kiss, the two parted ways until morning.


End file.
